A married primary school teacher who gave a 14-year-old boy sex lessons at her home has been jailed for 15 months.

Hannah Grice (32), who had pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent assault on the teenager at an earlier hearing, had sex with the boy on a number of occasions during their year-long relationship, Stafford Crown Court was told.

Grice, the mother of two children, aged eight and two, was also ordered to sign on to the sex offenders' register for ten years.

Simon Rippon, prosecuting, told the court: "The boy knew she was a school teacher and knew her prior to the incident and would engage in pleasantries with her. He developed a schoolboy crush on her.

"In March 2002 he told her he liked her. Both attended a party in the same month. She had to return to her home and he went with her. They stopped in a pub car park and became involved in sexual kissing. She told him she enjoyed the experience.

"In the following days and weeks contact would be continued with emails. In addition to this he would frequently go to her address and they would hug and kiss.

"He said he did not want it to go any further. At her suggestion they had sex in the matrimonial bed and she said she was on the pill. She also had oral sex with him. He said he objected on occasions. She sent him a Christmas card and said in a message: 'Keep tomorrow free and I will arrange for someone to have the kids for a few hours. If you can't make it, let me know'."

Mr Rippon said Grice, from Cannock, was questioned a number of times by the police and denied the allegations. She agreed they had a close relationship but said it was not sexual.

Stephen Bayley, defending, said: "I need to begin with an apology which is the most important thing I can say.

"This has been a traumatic and deeply felt period for many, many weeks for those closest to Mrs Grice and the boy. This has been a difficult situation for all concerned. This was not a wholly coercive relationship.

"She has resigned from her teaching post which was inevitable. She has seen and continues to see how this happened and how she could have stopped it. She feels deeply and permanently guilty and remorseful."

Judge John Shand told her: "One concern about this case . . . is that you were part of the teaching profession and should have been concerned about the child's welfare because he was a child.

"You did not abuse your trust as a teacher but you did abuse the trust of his family. I have no doubt at at the time you had considerable difficulties and were a very unhappy woman but that does not begin to justify what you did."

After the case the victim's mother said: "Prison's the best place for her. She was actively pursuing my son. This was the biggest breach of trust imaginable."

But Grice's husband, Mike, aged 34, said he stood by his wife.

He said: "When I stood at the altar with my wife and said in sickness and in health and for better or for worse. I will stand by those vows I took."

Trevor Pyke, Grice's father, said: "We are devastated. All I can say is that everything is not quite as clear cut as it was said in court.

"She is not the girl she was painted to be. She changed her plea because she was absolutely paranoid about going to prison."